In the tiny town of Hyndman, Bedford County, people who know Army Spc. Jeremy Sivits say that he would never have participated in the abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison unless otherwise pressured or ordered by superiors to do so.

	The Bedford Gazette via Associated Press Army Spc. Jeremy Sivits of Hyndman, Bedford County, in an undated family photo. Click photo for larger image.

A world away in the Middle East, though, top military officials said yesterday that Sivits, 24, will be the first of seven soldiers from the 372nd Military Police Company to be court-martialed in Baghdad for his role in the growing scandal that has rocked the military and the Bush administration.

Brig. Gen. Mark Kimmitt said yesterday that Sivits' military trial, which is open to news media, including Arab outlets, will be held on May 19 at the Baghdad Convention Center. The convention center is being used because it will accommodate what military officials expect to be a large media contingent from around the world.

Sivits, a trained mechanic serving as a military policeman, is accused of photographing the abuse of Iraqi prisoners. He is charged with conspiracy to maltreat subordinates and detainees, dereliction of duty for negligently failing to protect detainees from abuse, and cruelty and maltreatment of detainees, Kimmitt said.

Six other soldiers from the unit based outside of nearby Cumberland, Md., including Spc. Charles A. Graner of Uniontown, also have been charged and face courts-martial.

Capt. Donald J. Reese, 39, of New Stanton, the unit's commander, has received a reprimand but has not been charged, although Army investigators recommended he be relieved of his command.

The abuse, captured in graphic photographs that have been shown around the world and created a crisis for the Bush administration, shows American soldiers standing over Iraqi inmates, some of them naked and in sexually provocative positions. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, who has taken responsibility for the abuse scandal but resisted pressure from anti-war critics to resign, has said there are many more shocking photographs and videos of abuse.

Sivits' mother, Freda, said yesterday that the family would have no comment on the military's decision to court-martial her son first.

"We've been told to keep our mouths shut," Freda Sivits said. She declined to say who gave the family that advice.

Previously, Sivits' father, Daniel, told reporters that his son "was just doing what he was told to do."

"Where was their training? Who was their supervisor? Where was the leadership?" the elder Sivits said last week.

Daniel Sivits' thoughts aren't unlike those of others who live in Hyndman, a town of 1,500 people about 100 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, just north of Cumberland.

Thomas V. Cunningham, who was the town's mayor for 30 years and is commander of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars, said he feared that Jeremy Sivits and the other accused reservists were being targeted by investigators while higher military officials were not.

"I don't like to see people hornswoggled by government," said Cunningham. "It's a shame. It really breaks you up as a former serviceman. There's a lot coming out. This isn't the Army I served in. What worries me is people like Jeremy Sivits are going to take the beating. I got a feeling they'll push it down to the little guys."

As a boy, Sivits often visited the Cunninghams and swam in their pool. He was, Cunningham said, a quiet and respectful child who grew to be a man of integrity, one who was never in trouble.

Sivits graduated from Hyndman High School, where he was on the student council, played soccer and baseball, wrestled and participated in other activities.

He was proud of his assignment in the military reserves.

"His big thing was being in the reserves," Cunnngham said.

Sivits showed his pride, in fact, by showing up at the VFW post on occasions such as Memorial Day without even being asked. He would gladly help carry the flag, wield a rifle or serve in an honor guard.

"This really impressed me. It's hard to believe him [committing] any of these atrocities," Cunningham said. "He didn't seem to have that ability."

At the behest of the Sivits family, Cunningham said he authored a letter on Jeremy Sivits' behalf that they could forward to him, presumably to aid in his defense.

"I'll do anything I can for him," Cunningham said. "I just feel there was outside pressure [on him]. I don't think it was inward with him"

If convicted, Sivits faces a year in military prison, reduction in rank to private, forfeiture of two-thirds of his pay for one year, and possibly, discharge.